Pacific leatherback turtle faces extinction in 20 years

* Numbers have fallen 78 percent in last three decades

* Turtles nest in New Guinea and forage across the Pacific

* The Atlantic leatherback is in better shape

By Verna Gates

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Feb 27 The giant Pacific
leatherback turtle, known for its arduous 6,000-mile (10,000 km)
ocean trek from the U.S. West Coast to breeding grounds in
Indonesia, could go extinct within 20 years as its population
continues to plummet, scientists say.

"Sea turtles have been around about 100 million years and
survived the extinction of the dinosaurs but are struggling to
survive the impact of humans," said reproductive biologist Thane
Wibbels of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), a
member of a research team studying the fate of these reptiles.

The leatherback - the world's largest turtle - can grow to
six feet (1.8 meters) long and weigh as much as 2,000 pounds
(900 kg).

A study published this week in the Ecological Society of
America's scientific journal Ecosphere estimates that only about
500 leatherbacks now nest at their last large nesting site in
the Pacific, down from thousands previously. The study tracked
the turtle's ongoing population decline since the 1980s.

"If the decline continues, leatherback turtles will become
extinct in the Pacific Ocean within 20 years," Wibbels said.

The Pacific leatherback braves a transpacific journey that
is one of the longest migrations in nature. Experts say its
continued existence is imperiled by threats like climate change,
plastic pollution, fishing methods, predation and human hunting.

In the past 27 years, the numbers of western Pacific
leatherback turtles have dropped by 78 percent, making it
critically endangered, said Ricardo Tapilatu, a turtle
researcher at UAB and the State University of Papua in
Indonesia. He has studied the turtles at their last remaining
refuge, the remote Bird's Head Peninsula on New Guinea.

More than 75 percent of all western Pacific leatherback
nesting occurs there, numbering 489 turtles in the last breeding
season, the researchers said. The turtles forage across the
Pacific as far away as the U.S. coast of California, Oregon, and
Washington state.

The research team also included scientists from the U.S.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine
Fisheries Service and the World Wildlife Fund Indonesia.

The turtles can dive as deep as 4,000 feet (1.2 km). To
survive the cold depths, the leatherback can control its
temperature, staying warmer than surrounding waters. They feed
on jellyfish, eating hundreds a day.

The leathery shell feels like tire tread and it is
distinctively different from hard-shell sea turtles.

Their exact lifespan is unknown, but is believed to be up to
80 years. It is difficult to determine since males never return
to the beaches, living their lives in the sea.

Of the four primary Pacific nesting places of the past
century, the Malaysian population is extinct, and the Mexico and
Central American populations have fallen 95 percent.

'CONSTANT DANGER'

The leatherback is the only sea turtle that lives in open
ocean, negotiating numerous dangers along the way.

"They migrate 6,000 miles in seven months, and then back,
going through the territorial waters of at least 20 countries.
There is constant danger of being caught and killed," said
Tapilatu, a native of New Guinea.

For example, fishermen's drift nets and long-lines can snag
the air-breathing turtle, drowning it. Humans also introduced
wild hogs and dogs to the remote beaches where they nest. The
hogs are especially voracious predators of turtle eggs.

Near the nesting site, local fishermen still capture and
slaughter leatherbacks to consume the meat. A local tribe has
historically harvested about 100 turtles per year, as well as
eggs.

On some beaches, as few as 20 percent of the eggs hatch due
to increased beach temperatures, which could worsen with climate
change, Tapilatu said. Sand temperature determines the gender of
hatchlings, with higher temperatures favoring females.

There is hope of restoring the population of the endangered
reptiles, the researchers said. The Atlantic leatherback, which
is genetically different from the Pacific turtles, has made a
comeback through mutual country agreements to ban harvesting
adults or eggs on beaches.

Tapilatu said he plans to return to New Guinea to help
replicate that success story with the leatherback turtles
struggling to survive in his Pacific home.
(Editing by David Adams; Editing by Will Dunham)

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